Vientiane, Laos

Travelling again by the Chinese-Laos train, we arrived in Vientiane this afternoon. This was only a stopover in time for our flight to Hanoi tomorrow morning. We just about survived the manic tuk tuk taxi drive from the train station to our hotel, only cutting up most cars and crossing multiple lanes on every roundabout...

We were hoping to have a bit of time to explore the city however our hotel check-in was far from smooth. 30 minutes after walking in and the poorest service and organisation we've ever experienced, we came to the conclusion the hotel did not have a room for us despite our booking confirmation. We were unable to communicate with the receptionist at all, who displayed nothing but confusion as to why we had arrived at the hotel and spent the majority of the attempted conversation staring blankly at us and their computer screen or fiddling with random room keys. Words, gestures, even google translate would not work. After 30 minutes of attempting everything, we could not gain clarity on the situation so finally made the decision to leave. Upon turning to leave we heard the word ‘sorry’ from behind, the receptionist's first word. In excitement and seeing potential, we turned back in an attempt to rectify the situation, but without success as we were met with further silence and fumbling. We came away unsure whether the receptionist was drunk, high or simply incapable, but it was an experience and a painful one to say the least.

Not far away we found another room for the night. After finally checking in, we made it out for a late afternoon mooch to Patuxai Victory Gate, whilst also spotting perhaps the worst set of electrical cables we've seen so far (and that is saying something!)

We then spent the evening catching up on Vietnam planning ready for our flight in the morning. Very excited to begin our travels to Vietnam tomorrow!Read more